This invention relates generally to roofs for automotive vehicles and, more particularly, to a convertible roof for an automotive vehicle.
Traditional soft-top convertible roofs for automotive vehicles typically employ four or five roof bows, most of which have an inverted U-shape spanning transversely across the vehicle for supporting a vinyl, canvas or polyester fabric, pliable roof cover. A number one roof bow is mounted to a pair of front roof rails and is typically latched to a stationary front header panel of the automotive vehicle body disposed above the front windshield. A number two roof bow is typically mounted to a pair of center roof rails which are pivotably connected to the front roof rails. Furthermore, the number three, four and any additional optional roof bows are commonly mounted to a pair of rear roof rails which are pivotably coupled to the center roof rails. The roof cover can also have a hard or rigid portion along with the pliable portion. For example, reference should be made to U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,409 entitled xe2x80x9cConvertible Topxe2x80x9d, which is incorporated by reference herein.
Most traditional convertible roofs are stowed in a boot well or stowage compartment that is located aft of a passenger compartment in the vehicle. A boot or tonneau cover is then used to cover the boot well and conceal the convertible roof from view and/or protect the stowed roof from the environment. The use of a boot cover or tonneau cover increases the cost and complexity of a vehicle with a convertible roof. Additionally, the separate boot cover also increases the number of operating parts and material required to conceal the stowed convertible roof from view and/or protect it from the environment. Therefore, it would be desirable if the boot cover could be integrated into the convertible roof such that a portion of the convertible roof also functions as the boot cover when the convertible roof is in its stowed position.
Traditional soft-top convertible roofs can present a packaging (stowing) difficulty; that is, designing the convertible roof to reside in a minimal space in the stowage compartment when stowed. The difficulty is more pronounced when the folding roof is used on a larger vehicle (for example, a vehicle having front and rear seating areas). The packing of the roof rails is important to minimize the required stowage space. Therefore, it would also be desirable to provide a linkage assembly between the roof rails that allow for compact packaging of the convertible roof.
In accordance with the present invention, a unique and novel convertible roof is provided which includes a folding mechanism that couples a pair of adjacent roof rails together with at least two links to form a linkage assembly with at least four-bars without the adjacent pair of roof rails being directly connected to one another. The linkage assemblies control motion of the pair of roof rails relative to each other when the mechanism moves between raised and stowed positions. In another aspect of the present invention, a unique and novel way to control the folding of the convertible roof is employed such that a portion of the convertible roof serves as a cover that conceals a portion of the convertible roof within the stowage compartment. In yet another aspect of the present invention, a unique and novel convertible roof is provided which includes a folding mechanism that includes three roof rails coupled together by two linkage assemblies of at least four-bars each which in turn are coupled together by another linkage assembly of at least four-bars.
Along with providing a unique linkage assembly between first and second pairs of roof rails, controlling the top so that a portion serves as a cover, and providing a unique linkage assembly between three pairs of roof rails, additional objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.